Bilbao will ensure that the direct flight with New York is extended beyond September 2025

The Bilbao City Council will ensure that the direct flight with New York from Loiu Airport, which will start next spring, will be extended beyond September 2025. This was announced this morning by the Mayor of Bilbao, Juan Mari Aburto.

United Airlines announced last Thursday a new direct seasonal service, three times a week between Bilbao Airport and its New York/Newark hub, starting June 1, 2025 (subject to government approval).

After showing “excited” For this news, Aburto has emphasized the economic aspect more than the tourist aspect of this new air link, because “connectivity is a factor of competitiveness.” Likewise, he has announced that he will continue to “fight” so that this connection, “which is seasonal from May to September, continues in the future.”

As he has emphasized, it is a “historical milestone and from an economic point of view very powerful to improve economic development” in Bilbao and in the Basque Autonomous Community.

Political controversy

The announcement of the connection with Loiu has caused a political stir. For example, the chairman of the PP of Álava, Iñaki Oyarzabalhas accused PNV and PSE-EE of “breaching their obligations” with Foronda airport and announced that they will present in the Vitoria-Gasteiz City Council and in the Álava general assemblies “transoceanic flights and a strategy to improve the airport” will demand Alavés.

In a statement, Oyarzabal stated that “PNV and PSE-EE are once again leaving Álava behind” and “not fulfilling their obligations with Foronda and their own government agreement, which announced that Foronda would become the reference in the field of transoceanic flights, the reference airport in Euskadi“.

“We see that It’s all a hoax again, they leave Foronda behind“, unable to draw up a strategic plan for Foronda,” he criticized before emphasizing that “Álava is not on the agenda for PNV and PSE-EE.”

Oyarzabal has pointed out that “experts agree that Vitoria-Gasteiz meets the best conditions for this type of flight.” “The serious thing here is that the news that Loiu will be the one to restore transoceanic flights puts the Alava institutions on the wrong track,” he criticized.

In this sense, he believes that “PNV and PSE-EE in Álava have not done their job” and “while Loiu makes decisions, the Municipal Council and the Provincial Council have been here in Babia for too long.”

PP Vitoria-Gasteiz spokesperson, Iñaki García Calvoin turn, has denounced “the continued lies of PSE and PNV to Foronda” and believes that both groups “demonstrate once again that their bet is Bilbao against Vitoria-Gasteiz, the capital of Euskadi.”

Maider Etxebarria: “One does not take away from the other”

On the contrary, the mayor of Vitoria-Gasteiz, the Socialist Maider Etxebarria, has said that she does not believe that Loiu’s connection with New York City will affect the ambition that the Foronda airport in Alava has to operate transoceanic flights. “One doesn’t take away from the other,” he said.

When Etxebarria was questioned about this by journalists at the press conference after the local government, he ruled out that there was a “competition” between Basque airports when offering transoceanic flights.

“There are numerous transoceanic flights and the institutions will continue to work on the commitment that Foronda has transoceanic flights,” he indicated, reiterating “the clear commitment to the development of Foronda’s passenger business” as “it is clear that we need to improve.” figures.

“Are reference in merchandise. A few days ago we heard about DHL’s investment of 40 million euros in freight and the commitment is clearly to improve passenger numbers,” he noted.